Last year (it sounds so good to be able to say of 2020, "that was last year"), I completed my second Photo 365 challenge. And yes, I know it should have been a Photo 366, as 2020 was a leap year but I accidentally skipped August 24th. The good news is that I still completed … Continue reading Top Ten Photos of 2020
State of the ARC: December, 2020
State of the ARC is a meme hosted by Avalinah’s Books in which we round up our ARCs and attempt to wrangle them into something approaching order. Sometimes it’s like herding cats. I've had a nice break from reading ARCs lately, and while I found a few more to add to my NetGalley shelf, I … Continue reading State of the ARC: December, 2020
Sunday Sum-Up, December 27, 2020
It's the last Sunday Sum-Up of 2020. Here's to hoping that 2021 is a better year than 2020 was. I had a good Christmas, as far as Zoom Christmases go. We got online together around 9:30 on Christmas morning, and once my parents got their laptop oriented so that they weren't silhouetted by the sun's … Continue reading Sunday Sum-Up, December 27, 2020
Happy Solstice
Today, December 21, marks the Winter Solstice and year's long night. Tonight, I will be making soup and mulled wine. There will be candles, music, and perhaps a bit of reading from Neil Gaiman's book, Norse Mythology as I mark the longest night of the year. There will also be music, particularly an album or … Continue reading Happy Solstice
Sunday Sum-Up: December 20, 2020
Fall and winter are popular times for baking. And sometimes people are passionate about getting just the right ingredients. Do you know how I know that? Because when I went grocery shopping the other day, I needed to pick up buttermilk for the Irish soda bread I plan to make later today. I wandered to … Continue reading Sunday Sum-Up: December 20, 2020
Book Review: Promise of Blood
Promise of Blood (The Powder Mage Trilogy #1) by Brian McClellanFantasy545 pagesPublished April, 2013, by Orbit "The age of kings is dead," Field Marshal Tamas declares at the beginning of Promise of Blood, after he stages a bloody coup that brings and end to the corrupt and inept monarchy that enriched itself while allowing the … Continue reading Book Review: Promise of Blood
Big Books for 2021
There are some big books that have been sitting on my shelves for a while, just waiting for me to get around to giving them the time and effort they deserve. I'm not intimidated by big books. I'm fine with reading them. I mean, this year I read a 600 page biography of Thomas Cromwell, … Continue reading Big Books for 2021
Sunday Sum-Up, December 13, 2020
So one of my co-workers was (gently) teasing me because I had bought the cats a package of super fancy treats for Christmas (1. Yes, I bought my pets Christmas presents, and yes, I know they probably won't care; 2. They have more toys than they can play with and plenty of soft and cozy … Continue reading Sunday Sum-Up, December 13, 2020
Anticipated 2021 SFF Releases
So. 2020 is nearly over, and while the turning of the year won't solve many of our problems, ringing in the new year gives us all a chance to shake off the old one and feel like we can start anew. While the rest of the year was pretty much a dumpster fire, I read … Continue reading Anticipated 2021 SFF Releases
Dune Discussion: The Writing and Words of Dune
In part one of Jackie's and my discussion of Frank Herbert's Dune, we talked about Herbert's influences, their effects on the story of Dune, and the characters. In part two, we talk about the writing-- down to how certain word choices affect the story. We also talk about the Denis Villeneuve film, due out in … Continue reading Dune Discussion: The Writing and Words of Dune
